Mccarthy Era : Communists in America

• ISBN13: 9781604137651
• ISBN10: 1604137657
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-08-01
• Publisher: Facts on File

Summary

As the cold war began in the late 1940s, the fear of a Red threat within the United States intensified. Exploiting the public anxieties, Joseph R. McCarthy, a little-known senator from Wisconsin, launched his anti-communist crusade in 1950. Past membership in the Communist Party, friendship with suspected radicals, or buying a leftist newspaper was enough for a person to be blacklisted, fired from their job, arrested, or even deported. Federal employees, Hollywood actors, public schoolteachers, scientists, and many others were ensnared by the Red Scare. Though the Soviet Union did present a real threat and some American Communists did try to aid the Soviets through spying, McCarthy's disregard for the truth, bullying of witnesses, and trampling of Constitutional rights helped create one of the darkest, most controversial periods in American history. The McCarthy Era examines the influences, events, and repercussions of the period, giving readers a vivid sense of this time in history.

Author Biography

Ann Malaspina has written many books for young people, including Chelsea House's The Underground Railroad: The Journey to Freedom. She began her career as a newspaper reporter in Boston. Malaspina likes to read newspapers with her family in Northern New Jersey.

Table of Contents

Playwright on Trial	p. 1
Red Scare	p. 9
The Hollywood Ten	p. 23
The Senator from Wisconsin	p. 38
Conspiracy to Commit Espionage	p. 51
The Army-McCarthy Hearings	p. 64
Censure	p. 79
Can It Happen Again?	p. 92
Chronology and Timeline	p. 106
Notes	p. 109
Bibliography	p. 113
Further Reading	p. 118
Index	p. 121
About the Author	p. 127
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

As the cold war began in the late 1940s, dividing the world between communism and democracy, the fear of a Red threat within the United States intensified. Exploiting the public anxieties, Joseph R. McCarthy, a little-known senator from Wisconsin, launched his anti-communist crusade in 1950, relying less on facts than on rumor and innuendo to make his charges. Past membership in the Communist Party, friendship with suspected radicals, or buying a leftist newspaper was enough for a person to be blacklisted, fired from their job, arrested, or even deported. Federal employees, Hollywood actors, public schoolteachers, scientists, and many others were ensnared by the Red Scare. Though the Soviet Union did present a real threat and some American Communists did try to aid the Soviets through spying, McCarthy's disregard for the truth, bullying of witnesses, and trampling of Constitutional rights helped create one of the darkest, most controversial periods in American history. The McCarthy Era examines the influences, events, and repercussions of the period, giving readers a vivid sense of this time in American history.